I have friends in a big city nearby with reliable municipal fiber optic internet. If I can get one of them to set up a VPN, I’ll go that route. If not, I’d rather not go all the way from China, through the internet to come out in BFE Louisiana, then go through fricken Cox or AT&T to actually get out to the WWW… lol
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It’s not ideal but VPNs are basically the only way to reliably access foreign services. I would recommend a PFsense router to host a network with a VPN. That way you will have all of your devices connected to a VPN even if they don’t support it
Fall in line citizen, and you’ll be fine. Enjoy your stay. This would probably fit in the blog section.
Read online reviews first on that job. It seems many people end up hating that job.
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OVH will sell you a VM in eastern europe with unlimited transfers for $3.35/month. That’s what I meant by “not a lot of money”.
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Wow. That’s pretty good. I might end up using that. Is that what you’re using?
No, I live in the USA and use PIA. I do have a couple Linodes for various projects, but they’re much more expensive and don’t offer unlimited transfers.
I make this TL;DR post with the best intentions. Your choices are your own.
You’re going to the worst country in the world to do drugs and search ones soul lol
It’s likely a scam. I’ve worked in that industry for a long time. If you are going to gain entry to the country by getting a work visa then secure it all by getting a work license you should go with a well known company. Disney, EF, Wall Street, International Schools, etc. Do your research because small time companies will fuck with you like never before. I’ve met people that took offers to come to China but their company didn’t do anything besides tell them to get a travel visa. Needless to say, this guy was deported when the Chinese ICE equivalent raided that little English center. Another had to go to Hong Kong every 90 days to renew his travelers visa and the company would NOT pay for him to do this. He eventually was detained at the border. This is only the beginning of your worries.
If you’re going to fall into the trap of a family that will host you and teach you Chinese for a fee, you need re-evaluate how it works over there. 1st, you need to know what kind of family is going to take you in. Do they have a valid Hukou? 2nd, will you be living in squalor? Yes, I know this sound retarded but at the end of the day some shit companies only want a white guy in the center as a marketing tool and they will sell you the world only to give you a family that lives in destitution. 3rd, what region does that family live in? 4th, most families have no idea how to teach anything, let alone their own language. What’s really happening here is that they are going to be trying to get you to use more English with their kids than teaching you jack shit.
If you really want to learn Chinese in a natural, immersive way this is not the best way to go about it for little or no money. You are better off going with a real company that isn’t going to mess with you and hire the services of your coworkers to tutor you from a book a couple times a week and use what you learn in your daily life. Alternatively, for a bit more monies you can go to a Chinese learning center. If you plan to do it totally on your own through 100% natural interactions, you are going to find it hard to correct your errors unless you are clever and pick up on them because Chinese people aren’t going to tell you these things in genuine interactions. Often, you will need a native to tell you your errors because you won’t be able to tell you are making them.
IMO not really possible unless you don’t use these devices. Esp. if you develop some relationships with Chinese people who will inevitably ask you to download WeChat, use QQ, Ren Ren or Weibo. VPN no longer work within the country. My wife is in Beijing right now to see family for a couple weeks. Tried to use my VPN and it was a no go so there is truth to the great firewall sniffing out VPN protocols and snubing them out.
I lived in China for 6 years. Yes, things can vanish although it’s rare in my experience. Most frequently, it’s the shit you say online that disappears not yourself. If you go on Weibo or talk a huge amount of smack politically, socially or economically (esp. in Chinese) on WeChat it’s possible, and likely, the cops will come knocking on your door. Cameras are everywhere even if you do not have those devices so GG. Most often than not, this affects Chinese people much more than any foreigner. Also, the past 15-20 years have been somewhat kind to foreigners. A lot will depend on the political winds…and right now the Chairman is trying to buff up nationalism. My prediction is that vanishing acts will increase over the next few years. Could be wrong…but you never know. I left the country right around the time the communist party starting putting up “The Chinese Dream” marquees in subways around Beijing…I wonder how that’s working out for them right now…
The lay of the land isn’t too dissimilar to the places and people you have been to and interacted with before. Treat people like you would want to be treated and you’ll be fine. Don’t worry about face. People talk a lot about face or Guanxi…maybe when you learn the language well and are trying to be a badass you can worry about that. The biggest difference is that people tend to be non confrontational/don’t want to talk about things that matter or show no interest and for good reason. You will meet people who like to talk about the west, history, economics, politics and the like but do it in English for the love of god and not in a crowded area.
You can, just do it in English away from folks.
Maybe. This is not the case with the more legitimate companies, however. Most of these companies have opened up their hiring practices to include native English speaking countries that are not white. That said, they may not pay you as much…
Well, in my experience, you will have to register a SIM card with China Telecom or Unicom. I had to present my visa to register for one soo…yeah. GL. IDK much about the black market but if you care that much to dig into the seedy underbelly of China to get a burner that can’t be traced to you or some shit like that don’t go. You are too afraid. The more you fight this type of shit in China the more you will go crazy trying to do it. Also, if you are going to China to “find youself” then why worry about this security bullshit? If you manage to be a boss and learn the language: speaking, reading and writing and squeeze your way into a company then worry about that kind of stuff. Then again, the communist party will probably have a way to get your shit anyway…so again, try not to worry about these sorts of things. It’s a losing battle.
100% yes yes do that. Do you want to teach children, teens, adults or all of the above? Also if you decide to come back to the states or wherever you are from be prepared to have a plan on how you are going to explain your resume to future employers. Putting english teacher on your resume when you are trying to be banker or admin does not look good. Hell, it doesn’t look good for most decent paying jobs.
Anyway. rant over. Hope this helps.
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I didn’t know you were so passionate about this subject.
China is a love hate relationship for me lol. These threads pop up now and again so it gives me a chance to info dump. If I were @zovc I would teach English in Japan or Korea instead. Korea esp. Best time of my life. Harder to get a job there though as it’s tougher to get a working visa. You need to get an Apostille and jump through some other hoops that you don’t have to for China.
You won’t have to worry about security issues (as much), better interwebz (most internet speeds in China are 4 mB down and less up. I lived in tier one cities and this is what I got…may have changed since I left).
I’ve worked with many many people who said they came to China to escape/find themselves/whatever. Most times these hires did not work out. At the time my company was desperate for some bodies so they were taking more risks than usual. If I can prevent someone from going to overseas for a silly reason when nothing is really going to change, I want to try. Because…the company isn’t going to pay your way back…and you will wind up paying through the nose for a flight back among other things.
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Yep, you’ll probably want to run L2TP on that VM because other methods make it easier to leak data. I have a very strict firewall at a location I work at and StrongSwan is the only way out.
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I’ve read that IPsec traffic can have problems passing through firewalls and is much easier to track and block compared to other alternatives. I’m skeptical whether an IPsec based VPN would even work in China at all right now.
Hmm, I’ve never been to China, so I can’t say for sure.
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I’ve been watching ADVChina on YT and they seem to have lots of experience doing exactly what you plan to do and have lots to say about their experiences in China.
Here’s one on the subject of teaching english you might find useful:
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The issue is mostly with the port configuration needed for IPsec to work and its a huge beacon on firewalls unlike say OpenVPN which can easily be ran on a none standard port.
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Per the Streisand page I linked earlier, OpenVPN wrapped in stunnel gets past the great firewall, as does Wireguard. I haven’t played around with Wireguard yet, it looks really neat, maintains connections when your source IP changes.
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My advice is to follow the laws in China to an absolute T.
VPNs are not alllowed there. If you use one, expect to both be caught, and punished. And I don’t want to know what that means.
Don’t J-walk. Don’t spit on the streets, don’t do anything.
Also, after watching SerpentZA, I think it would behoove you to dress up. A man in a suit commands a certain minimal level of respect and decorum. Tailored clothes can be had relatively inexpensively in China.
Don’t go out drinking. Don’t allow yourself to be drunk in public. Shanghai is a verb in addition to a noun.
Try to establish a network of fellow [westerners] once (or before if possible) there. You keep tabs on each other, and report in and such so that if anything happens you have someone who can help.
Do learn Chinese, but try not to let on how much you know. Listen hard.
I don’t think China is particularly dangerous, but the thing is that you are vulnerable there.
Also, delete all your social media immediately. Do it now. It can only be used against you.
You sound like my grandmother lol. @zovc you’ll be fine. If you drink, go drink. Hell, it’s not illegal to drink in the street. Have some fun while you’re over there if you go. Take some risks. It’s not much different from being in America, truth be told.
J-walking is an ancient Chinese past time.
And it makes you a target for criminals. Just like you normally do. lol. Keep in mind all of this depends on where you are in China. If you are in a less than tier 2 city, don’t worry about it.
Only to the police and authorities. Speak freely to those you wish to make relationships with. Do not be afraid to do this or you will have a bad time.
This 100%. Again, same with anywhere you go.
No more than the average person IMO. Yes, there are some foreigner traps you can walk into. For instance, the biggest one IMO is accepting a job with a shady company. Yes, occasionally there are police outposts (idk what else to call them. Mobile police checkpoints?) where they will ask for your papers depending on the level of political instability in your area…but they do the same shit to the Chinese people too. Keep your wits about you and for the most part you’ll be just fine.
Tons of Chinese locals use VPNs. It is definitely illegal but you won’t get into trouble for that. It isn’t North Korea.
Don’t spit? Chinese spit CONSTANTLY. It feels like they do nothing but hock loogies on the street. Don’t know why, it’s a cultural thing.
I think you’re remembering breathless 90s news stories about Singapore, where they caned some kids for spitting gum on the street. Singapore is much less permissive on stuff like that. In China nobody gives a crap what you’re up to, as long as you aren’t political.
Sorry if I miss some of your specific points, fruitbrut. Thanks for sharing your thoughts, though, for sure!
My idea of “soul searching” has nothing to do with doing drugs, personally. I know people do it, but I have no interest in impairing myself while travelling solo, I don’t even enjoy drinking all that much so I’m liable to not even do that.
I got started down this specific path “Au pair”-ing by a person who had a great experience, and I’m sure it ultimately does run the gamut between good and bad. I’ve also been browsing helpx, and so far I’ve felt pretty comfortable with the replies I’ve received–they want to chat on Skype to get familiar which I think is a pretty nice gesture.
China specifically? It’s actually one of the places I’m least personally interested in, but an Au pair agency contacted me and seems a lot more eager to get me out there, and they are a lot less focused on the “nanny” aspect and a lot more focused on the “teach people English” aspect, which I am excited for. Also, the English courses they’re referring to are university courses, not the host family teaching me in their shed while poking me with heated iron rods. Haha (Maybe those things are one in the same in China, sounds like you know better than me!)
I’m much more interested in starting my journey in Japan or Korea, and I’ve seen really compelling helpx listings for those countries, helpx listings generally don’t offer monthly pay like Au pair arrangements do. I’m starting to probe at Au pair offerings in Korea and Japan (and Thailand and Vietnam), but they are a lot less abundant than ones in China.
What’s more, I do not have a degree, which is a huge limitation for how marketable I am. So, unfortunately I do have to be a little less picky about opportunities I choose.
How did you get set up teaching in Japan or Korea, if you don’t mind me asking?